If not for Verizon Wireless’ arrogant, dismissive and, in general, bad customer service I would not be enjoying Virgin Mobile now. I would still be paying three times more to Verizon.
About two years ago, I noticed that my Verizon Wireless Motorola smartphone was not getting reliable signal at home – that there were more dead zones in my apartment than live ones. A self described troubleshooter, I began – well troubleshooting. Never expecting anything but a satisfactory resolution, I of course contacted Verizon wireless customer service. Imagine – two years of unrelenting calls to tech support, but they had no recourse for me!
What I discovered was – as I surmised at the outset of this epic customer service failure – that the signal was weak in the apartment not because of the service provider’s signal, but because of the cellphone’s technology. It was simply a stroke of luck that the phone I chose from Virgin Mobile has the technology which picks up the signal in my apartment. (Recently, I read a review which indicated that the phone I’m using – LG Optimus V – has a dual antenna technology – whereas the cell phones that were giving me unreliable signal in my home don’t.)
So thank you Verizon for providing below par customer service, thereby encouraging me to look for alternatives and finding an all around better deal with great signal!
How ironic! Just when I found the cellphone that saves me approximately $30 a month, I now also have a land line phone that let’s me rest my cell phone in one place (where there is consistent strong signal) and enables me to make and receive calls all over my apartment. All this is done via a Bluetooth signal between my cell phone and my land line phone! That land line phone is the vTech Vtech DS6421-3.
donifar
gity
ilmozart
Liv
Liora Farkovitz
Consumer Electronics and Other Technology 
Liv is extremely competent in making technology work efficiently. While she is also very collegial in working on projects, she is also very persistent in demanding (in a very pleasant way) that customer support is supportive of the customer.
In the particular situation quoted here, Liv was more than patient and tolerant. Eventually, however, the dam broke and she would take no more ignorance and lack of service. There is a happy ending as she notes. Go, all of you, and do the same.
Have not regreted it for an instant. Contracts do nothing for the consumer.